Wednesday, February 03, 2010

Should Obama Embrace the Bush Tax Cuts to Revive His Presidency?

In a new opinion piece for the Wall Street Journal, Holman Jenkin suggests that if Obama wants to revive his Presidency then he should lead a coalition against untimely tax hikes. A number of Democrats in the House of Representatives are starting to call for an extension of the Bush tax cuts, and Jenkins suggests that showing his support for the group could be a “win” for Obama and the economy. You can find a section of the opinion article below.

That the economy doesn't need tax hikes on job creators and investors hanging over it right now should be obvious, so let's skip to the political benefits for the president. Leading a coalition of Republicans and moderate Democrats to ward off the danger wouldn't just be "bipartisan," and serve as a writ of divorce from the Pelosi left, but it also would show President Obama's leadership being tempered by realism, to do what is doable.

President Obama would have to withstand the hot breath of MoveOn types who'd castigate him over what Democrats lazily deride as tax cuts for the rich. He'd have to withstand a simple-minded media dwelling on the fact that bankers would keep a bigger share of their bonuses.

He'd pay a price for his unwise rhetoric of late, not to mention his short-sighted political decision to run against the bank bailout that his own administration authored and that will be remembered as his finest hour. (The rejoinder for Republicans has been just too easy: Tim Geithner.)